MINNEAPOLIS--MEMBERS Development Company’s semi-annual Owners Meeting in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., gave credit union leaders the opportunity to hear from powerful external speakers, as well as their credit union peers, the company reported.
“We’re happy to see this event continue to grow, with turnout our highest ever,” said Jeff Kline, Chief Executive Officer, MEMBERS Development Company. “In addition to representation by CO-OP Financial Services, CU Direct, CUNA Mutual Group and MEMBERS Trust Company, 85% of our owner credit unions attended – with an average of 2.25 staff members per credit union. It’s exciting to see leaders from top-tier credit unions working and learning together.”
Among some of the highlights shared at the meeting, according to Members Development Co.:
- Mobile Customer Experience– David Eads, CEO of both Mobile Strategy Partners and Gro Solutions; and Javier Santana, Founder and Creative Director of Launch, spoke on the future of mobile.
“Increasingly, auto manufacturers are providing APIs for their car technology,” Eads said. While these displays have long been used for navigation systems, fuel consumption info or entertainment, Eads suggested they might also offer imaging voice commands for banking. “The interface could change as transactions happen when the car is stopped,” he said. “Speaking directly to a video teller would be another great use of the display.”
Santana said consumer behavior is changing, thanks to the pace of interaction design, so credit unions need to do the same. “Customers want easy-to-use interfaces that have relevant information to make quick, intelligent decisions,” he said, discussing apps like Digit, which analyzes users’ income and spending, finding small amounts of money to transfer from their checking accounts to Digit savings.
But some apps aren’t catching on. Santana noted Samsung’s wearable “Smart Suit,” which offers near field communication to transfer contact information … it may be easier to just pull out a business card.
Tip for credit unions: Be alert to new banking apps, but choose wisely. Some developed in recent years have been a bust, while others save time, are fun and easy to use, making consumers an excellent target for fin-tech innovators.
- Channel Optimization – Speaking on digital channels, Derek Frost, Principal/Executive Advisor for Corporate Executive Board (CEB), discussed the importance of seeing the opportunities and challenges in each stage of adoption:
“A barrier for non-mobile users is fear that their personal data may be stolen; they need to be educated on the security features this channel provides,” he said.
Helping members feel comfortable with digital is important. Frost cited a 2014 MPC Consumer and Community Banking Report, which found the cost for an in-person teller deposit averages 65 cents, compared with .03 cents for digital.
Frost said CEB’s Customer Experience Survey showed that 60% of customers surveyed are digital adopters and use non-branch channels exclusively to make routine transactions. But another 19% would move to digital if their credit union offered help in making the switch.
According to Frost, one credit union CEB has studied showed that members’ most important needs were convenient transaction services and easy access to money on their timetable. During the first four months of using a guidance approach, the credit union saw 8,700 mobile banking app downloads/month and gained 85,000 active app users.
Tip for credit unions: People often feel hassled and stretched for time; many would welcome using digital banking if they were given simple, hands-on support to help them learn how to use it.
- Credit Union Innovation – Another highlight of the two-day event was “Finovate-style” demos of creative products and services developed by MDC’s Innovation Council, comprised of creative individuals from 15 credit unions and Corporate One Federal Credit Union. Based on a marketplace survey, 745 respondents indicated they were most likely to use four of the 10 products and services tested. The winning ideas were presented by four teams of two Innovation Council members. They had seven minutes each to make their cases, just like the actual Finovate experience.